Arrange The Clues II
Stair To Heaven "Where is our next target?" Jason asked Momoko as he helped the girls out of the well, Wendy climbing onto his back and just clinging there. "There were a total of seven, correct?" Momoko scratched her head. "Correct. One down, six to go." She withdrew the map again and began to trace her finger along it. "According to the map, the next place we should go to is the Everlasting Stairs. That's to the south of here. We should reach it in about 30 minutes; tops." Iris's ears fidgetted around, as if determining the quickest route to the stairs. Momoko just looked at her with an expression of pure 'what'. "...Huh." "What are you doing?" Yasaka asked Iris, looking up at the girl. Like anyone, she got along fairly well with Iris, but since she was the only other one with animal characteristics, she felt a bit of a bond there. Still, Iris confused her like anyone else. Iris pressed her pointer finger to her lip. "Sssh. I'm judging an appropriate path for us to get there in a jiffy." Vivian sighed. "Will you stop using outdated sla-" Iris's next words silenced Vivian. "Alright, follow me~~!!" The squirrel raced down the hill, zipping down into the town. Jason immediately rang the bell. Iris was too hotheaded, running off without them when she was supposed to be leading. Hearing the bell chime caused Iris' ears to perk up once more as she rushed back to Jason, chattering "I'mcomingI'mcomingI'mcomingI'mcomingI'mcoming~~" Zipping back to him at incomprehensible speeds, Iris leapt into his arms. Momoko applied her palm to her forehead in exasperation. "Take it slow, please." "Iris, you need to stop running when it comes to situations like these." Jason told her, setting her down. "If you have a decent grasp on the location, lead us." Iris's ears drooped down. "Aww, alrighty...." She took upon a somewhat serious tone and air; somewhat dissapointed, yet somewhat relieved. She walked rather disjointedly, without the spring in her step that she once had. Vivian bluntly told her, "Iris. All he asked was for you to take it slow, not jump off a cliff. It's not bad." Sensing her discontent, Jason ran his hand over her ears, scratching them in the way she liked. He could feel Wendy's cheeks puffing as she clung to his back, but paid it no mind. He wouldn't disregard one girl for another. "Now Iris, lead us quickly." Iris nodded, bobbing her head like she was a toy or something; her tone was that of her usual joyfulness. "Righty~" Her steps picked up the pace; but she didn't rush ahead as she normally would- instead, she was taking multiple twists and turns in order to reach the destination as quickly as possible. A few minutes later, Iris declared, "Here~" She pointed upwards at a set of stairs which ascended indefinitely, causing Ulalia to squirm. "Seriously? That doesn't look too bad..." Vivian muttered under her breath. Ulalia growled, "Darn stairs. My mortal enemy, we meet again." Jason looked at the stairs, frowning. He could feel Gehaburn's essence shaking, as it it wanted to cut. "There's something waiting..." He murmured, using his hands to grip Wendy's own. He took a step forward, walking ahead of them now. "Let us climb." Ulalia was completely paranoid about these stairs. "I don't like them. Sitting there, all smug, those stairs." Momoko couldn't even hold back a short giggle. "Just shut up and let's go." She grabbed Ulalia and began to drag her. As they ascended, Jason could see where the stairs got theor name. He couldn't see where these were heading; whoever built it had had much more time on their hands than someone should. This, coming from a man who wanted to create a new World Order. Hypocrisy at it's finest. As far as the eye could see, it was just stairs ascending upwards. Momoko was beginning to become uneasy about this; but what was irking her more was the face that Ulalia was pulling as she was scrambling to escape from her clutches. "Look, it's not so bad. See?" Ulalia...wasn't convinced. "I think I feel sick..." "It's not that bad." Yasaka looked down at Ulalia. Tough words, coming from a cat who was flying up the stairs as opposed to walking. "Tought it out!" "Yasaka..." Wendy chided. "Don't be so mean...you're not even walking." And yet, neither was she, clinging to her beloved's back as she was. In an amusingly ironic turn of events, it seemed that Vivian was the only one not complaining. "Guys. Buck up and let's just keep walking. We're bound to reach the end...eventually-" Vivian then froze up; a look of pure disgust crossed her face as she let out a shrill shriek; causing the others to swiftly turn around. Iris's face showed nothing but concern; she tried to run to Vivian- though she too was snatched up by an abundance of tendrils. "...Hurk-" Momoko too was immobilized. Ulalia was snatched up, as she screamed out, "I told you all! I told you--!!" Jason was remaining calm as he watched his girls snatched up by the tentacles, keeping Wendy well out of reach. This was all good, because at the site of tentacles she was clinging to him like her life depending on it. Jason looked at the tentacles, analyzing their movement. "I see. That explains these stairs...and the legend attached to them." He looked up at the girls. "All of you. Relax. Let the tentacles do as they please. No harm will come to you." Iris sighed in something resembling relief. "Phew...but you never know. They could be like the slimes..." Momoko wasn't convinced, using her ice powers to attempt to freeze the tentacles off, to no avail. "Damn slimy pieces of garbage...!" Ulalia shot her an 'I told you so' look. "Momoko, calm down." Jason told her, walking right past the girls, descending down the stairs.. "Watch what the tentacles do, before you overreact." "Why are we walking down?" Wendy asked, shuddering as one of the tentacles barely missed her. "Watch." The tentacles' grip constricted as the girls squirmed around frantically; in an instant, the tendrils contracted and then a vast abyss of nothingness manifested underneath them, dragging Vivian, Iris, Ulalia, and Momoko underneath the stairs in the blink of an eye. "Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa--!?" Momoko let out a hoarse scream as she and the other three were spat out at the beginning of the stairs, covered in mud for some reason. "...What the hell just happened...!?" "It's clear now." Jason replied, landing on the bottom of the stairs easy. "We're dealing with yet another demonic creature. It's quite possible every mystery of the Dragon Clan is merely a vermin we have to kill." "Umm....they need to bathe..." Wendy pointed out the obvious as they were covered in muck. She as glad she'd clung to Jason. While Vivian subtly dusted herself off, as the other hopped up from their struggling positions. "...The heck was that?" Those were the only words which were able to escape Vivian's mouth. Momoko immediately summarized the situation. "So THAT's why the stairs are 'Everlasting'. They're not stairs at all; just some demon bonded to them, or a demon who took upon the physical form of the stairs." "That brings about the question of what to do." Jason looked back at the stairs, thinking over the situation. "Destroying the stairs seems to be the easiest solution." "That's rude though!" Wendy piped up from Jason's back. "We're not Fairy Tail, we don't want to cause property damage!" Vivian seemed quite pissed off, for one. "...So? If it's evil, we destroy it. Simple as that." "You think it's simple." Jason seemed to be reprimanding Vivian for such thoughts. "The demon is ancient, there are bound to be defences of a kind. We'll have to see." Iris was as hyper as ever; though she quickly deduced something. "Let's all try everything short of actually blowing it up to try and make it move~" Vivian growled, "I honestly believe that you just blurted out what EVERYONE was thinking, Iri." Vivian was always so mean to Iris for some reason. "There's more to it than that." Jason waved Vivian off. "Watch." He picked up a piece of a rock and threw it in the direction of the stairs. It collided with a barrier and was repelled before it could make any contact. "You are foolish to think it was take such an obvious form and leave itself open to harm from humans." Vivian seemed a bit irked by Jason's statement; though she didn't say a word. Iris was amazed by Jason's tact; questioning, "...How did you figure that out??" "I know how demons work." Jason told her, raising Gehaburn up. "In a disguised form such as that, your first thought should be how to shatter it's defences." "But it didn't kill them..." Wendy said, looking at the stairs over Jason's shoulder. "So...what does it mean?" Momoko added on, "THAT is a good question..." Even she was confused. Of course she was rather naive in terms of dealing with more complex demons, but still. The Heart "We need to pierce the core." Jason replied, letting Wendy down from his back -she wasn't happy with this- and hoisting Gehaburn over his shoulders. "Every being has multiple weak spots, and every being has a core. For humans, it is the heart. Demons, being living things, have a core like the heart has well. We need to aim for that if we are going to destroy this demon." Momoko realized something. "So if we were to attack it's core, then we'd either find a strategic weak spot or hammer away at the weakest spot before the core gives way, right?" "Yes." Jason confirmed her statement. "The problem is discerning the core's location, especially in a form such as that." Momoko came to a "genius" realization. "....Alright, let's all survey the thing and examine it thorughly; search every nook and cranny on the damn thing to see what makes it tick." "That's the only option we have." Jason agreed. "The problem....the vermin most likely won't take kindly to us wandering across it's body." "But we have to, right?" Wendy asked, peering at the stairs. "Yes. The key is time. It didn't notice us until we reached a certain spot at the staircase. Despite how it seemed, that was only a half hour. We have that long to check this beast. If we cannot make it within that time..." Jason frowned. "...it will figure out what we're doing and we'll have to fight." Iris' ears poked up in panic. "I'm...not good with monsters~" Truth be told, she really wasn't. Ironic how a half-monster was afraid of monsters. "So I may sit this one out~" Vivian noticed this and then bluntly told Iris; "You smashed the previous demon against the damn wall without hesitating. Just...how." "It's acceptable." Jason placed a hand on Iris' head. "You may refrain from entering the battle. I'd quite like it if Wendy would as we-." "No!" Wendy insisted loudly. "I want to help, I don't want to have to sit on the sidelines. I have magic too!" Vivian gave Jason an aside glance. "Maybe, you should let her fight. She has proven to be extremely useful before; so why not? Remember, she and Iris took down Geil. That should be more than enough proof." Jason took a glance at the demon, mainly at the tendrils he knew were there. However, he relented. "Alright. Stick close to me." "Of course!" Wendy was pumped, but she was always eage to prove herself, always wanting to get in there and do something. Sitting around and not being of any help wasn't her style. "Let's start now, right?" Momoko, for a moment, had that cold gaze in her eyes that made it seem as if she were masked once more. "Affirmative. Let's just get this over with." The tone that she used was emotionless and cold as the ice she manifested. She circled around the stairs, inspecting it throughly for any deficincies that could be strewn upon the construction. Vivian and Ulalia glanced at each other, lamenting this situation. "So...essentially, if the tentacles come out, we're bait?" "No, we're all going in after the core." Jason replied. "You're only bait if you run towards the exit." Ulalia quickly got behind Vivian and pushed her further towards the stairs. "Now, onward our faithful decoy and sexy meatshield!" Vivian shot her an irked glare. "....Tch! Don't boss me around, you nutter..." She put one foot forward; followed by another, ascending. Jason dashed right past them, his face set. "Gehaburn, let's kill this piece of vermin." He murmured to the blade, which almost seemed to respond with a quiver. It seemed to be itching to cut. He climbed still further, searching for the core higher up, while the girls, sans Wendy who was ith Jason, were far lower on the steps, looking around as best they could. Vivian remained cautious as she ascended; for moments at a time she felt like her body getting lighter; quivering in anticipation as she felt a cascade of movement undulate beneath her feet, causing a shiver to trail down her spine. "...Okay, on a scale of 1 to 10 of how spooked I am, I'm an eleventy-billion. Seriously!" "That's not a number." Jason said offhandedly, hearing her all the way from the his height. "The core...where is it? Where would you hide the heart?" Ulalia, by herself, began to run caculations. "...Alright, given the length and width of those stairs, it's safe to say that it's positioned perfectly in the center. However, getting to it...is a different matter. Since the tentacles will ensnare you like before, it's probably wise to burn them off and unleash incredible destructive force from where they spawn." Vivian remarked by her lonesome, "...That's awfully serious, coming from you." "Then someone will need to play bait." Jason replied, looking down from his perch. "Ulalia, Vivian. Attract the tentacles." Vivian protested, "Why is it ALWAYS me!?" She was, well, the only one available at the time. Because Iris is hiding and Wendy was with Jason; while Ulalia was needed for calculations, Vivian was the odd one out. She could feel a shiver travel down her spine as she persisted in placing one foot before the other, with Ulalia cheering her on. Safe to say, it wasn't encouraging. The tentacles immediately writhed from under the stairs, any young child's nightmae (and now Vivian's), and chased right after her. Jason took this as his chance, and began to ascend the stairs, heading towards the "center". Somehow, Gehaburn was being drawn to it. Demon to demon he assumed. SKRICT! In an instant, multiple tentacles wrapped around Vivian's legs and constricted her boundlessly. Vivian squirmed around like she was in grave danger- which she was, "...DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA--!!" She let out a hoarse scream of pain; though being ensnared was the perfect chance for people to hack away at the tendrils and thus the staired demon. Jason ignored it. Of course, Vivian's safety was always a priority to him, however, he had to focus more on finding the core of the demon. Gehaburn seemed to be leading him, he knew that much, and he kept ascending, heading towards what he thought was the center of the stairs. WHOOSH! The myriad of tendrils raised her above the stairs, effortlessly hoisting her into mid air. "Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!" Vivian couldn't do anything but squeal loudly; the tentacles had her perfectly under their control as they creeped up her delicate frame; perforating her and lashing all over her. Jason could hear this, and had the strangest feeling Iris was recording it somehow. As his climbing came to a stop, Gehaburn began to resonate with the spot he was standing on. "Is this is, Gehaburn?" He looked down, and, could clearly see through the steps into the peering darkness below, and a large, pulsing red mass was there. "I see. This is it." A pair of menacing eyes gazed up at Jason as a grotesque fanged mouth erupted from the stairs. It said nothing; but it's intentions were clear. Vivian, in the meantime, was being thrown around like a ragdoll in the air while the tentacles climbed all over her; with nobody really doing anything about it. "Why won't anyone help me!?" "I've faced much stronger demons than the likes of you." Jason replied, looking down into the face with contempt. "It will be a waste of time to lift my sword for this..." Despite just saying that, he began to raise his blade, and in a flash, sliced right into the stairway, cutting straight through the core like butter. "A low-class demon like you is 1,000 years too early to stop Gehaburn." Truly, Jason's words were nothing but the truth. This demon- Raganda Banda- was a low-key one. And seriously, he would be wiped off the plane of existence in a few moves. Nevertheless, it managed to pull itself together; but only barely, and sprouted more tentacles to attack Jason with. Jason dove right in, dodging every tentacle that came after him, maneuvering in mid-air as he dove down towards the core, which seemed to be fixing itself. "Foolish." He coated Gehaburn in energy, and, once again, swing it straight down the middle, slicing the core straight in half. "Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!" Raganda Banda let out a brutish howl of immense pain as the tentacles swarming at Jason ceased; though Vivian was still flailing around violently. "Dammit, help me!" Tentacles crawled into her clothes; instantly, she blushed. "...Actually, hold that tho-thought..." "Jason, the stairs are crumbling!" Wendy shrieked from his back. True enough, the stairs began to crumble, and Jason leapt on the the falling stairs, using them to aid his movement as he jumped towards Vivian, slicing the tentacles apart, and caught her in his arms as she began to fall. Vivian was flustered; at least more flustered than her usual tsundere self. "H-Hey...! Tch, jerk, you enjoyed that, didn't you!?" She yelled at him; her crimson eyes rolled to the side as she noticed Iris with a video recorder. "...Oi, you...!" Iris grinned. Jason landed on the ground neatly, and noticed that Ulalia and Momoko made it out in one piece due to Ulalia's magic. In his haste to save Vivian, the latter two had slipped his mind....not that he'd tell Momoko that. Momoko dusted herself off; Iris watched everything return to normal as she put away the camera nonchalantly, acting as if she was not subjecting Vivian to embarrassing filming. "Well, now with that solved, where do we go next~" Jason looked over at Momoko. "That is a question you should be answering, this is your land. There are five "treasures" left. Decide for us." Momoko was attempting to count on her fingers."Then, there's the Fountain of Truth." Iris' ears perked up. "Fountain of Truth?" Momoko began to explain. "Yes. It's said that when you stare into it, it reveals your deepest secrets." Vivian was skeptical. "...Isn't that just magic brown-nosing?" Jason's eyes glazed over. "I'm actually interested in this one. A Fountain of Truth...how does it work, Momoko?" Momoko curtly responded; "It's a form of Lost Magic...I think. The reflection of the water spreads out and then it broadcasts it..." Ulalia wasn't impressed. "So, that's basically embarrassing yourself in front of everyone?" Momoko pressed her palm to her forehead. "No, no, that's not it...!" Nobody was impressed. "Okay, that's it. I admit it." Jason shot Ulalia a glare. "Be quiet." He hissed. "Embarrassing? There's a difference between horrific memories and the little things that make you flush red. Think before you talk, Ulalia." Wendy flinched. She rarely saw Jason get mad. For some reason, the area around the group became colder than Momoko's ice! Iris whispered in a tone that seemed solemn- completely at odds with her normal self; "Believe me, I know. Some things are best left buried deep within our memories." Vivian noticed how Iris had become rather sad. "...Iri, just ignore it. That's all in the past now..." Iris was unusually quiet right now; no further responses were given from her as Ulalia and Momoko remained oblivious to the situation; though Ulalia did realize what Jason meant. "Let's go find this 'Fountain'." Jason replied icily. "We're going to destroy it." END